UAE group launches campaign to plant 1 billion trees globally

Karen Storey, founder of OBTI.
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Updated 27 January 2021
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UAE group launches campaign to plant 1 billion trees globally

The UAE’s The Storey Group (TSG) has launched an ambitious initiative to encourage Emirati residents and corporates to come together to help plant 1 billion trees globally by 2026 in a transformational project designed to help offset the country’s carbon emissions.

After almost two years of intense research and development, TSG has teamed up with EcoMatcher, a certified social enterprise and the world’s first blockchain-enabled digital tree-planting platform, to launch the One Billion Trees Initiative (OBTI), which is aimed at capturing 250 billion kgs of carbon within a decade of planting the full tree complement.

“The world produces 51 billion tons of greenhouse gases every year. Decarbonization is now the biggest challenge facing humanity. To reach zero, we need innovation, collaboration, and action. By helping to plant 1 billion trees by 2026, the UAE can play our part,” said Karen Storey, OBTI founder and project director.

OBTI enables people to buy or gift trees, with each tree delivering an annual carbon sequestration of 25 kgs, or plant and name a forest of 1,000 trees or more. Trees will be planted around the world with locations in nine countries — Guatemala, Peru, Uganda, the UAE, India, Nepal, Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines — with more to follow via a target of 20 NGO tree-planting partners by the end of this year.

Via the EcoMatcher app, tree “owners” can track every tree’s performance from their phones through ID geolocation, learn each tree’s story — its species, plant date, farmer and more, and even engage with each tree while tracking its carbon impact with easy-to-use dashboards.

“This offers up new and tangibly effective sustainability opportunities for individuals and brands to engage employees, customers and suppliers with a host of integrated digital marketing tools,” said Storey. “Brands can now fully integrate transparent tree-planting into their business and brand sustainability story on their road to carbon zero.”

OBTI has also teamed up with the UAE-based advisory and sustainability experts Mātiti Group and Mātiti Green to engage, connect and partner local and regional companies.

“OBTI is a remarkable initiative and a purpose-driven cause. With Mātiti’s mission of being a negative carbon footprint company, Mātiti Group are committed to walking the talk together with OBTI in delivering the 1 billion trees to the world, and setting the right example for change,” added Charul C. Jaitly, OBTI advisory board member and CEO of Mātiti Green.


ITC Infotech accelerates Vision 2030 through digital hub in Riyadh

Updated 17 January 2026
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ITC Infotech accelerates Vision 2030 through digital hub in Riyadh

ITC Infotech’s commitment to delivering real digital change in the Middle East is reinforced by strengthening collaboration and working more closely with customers on the ground. The establishment of its Digital and AI Engineering Hub in Riyadh brings superior digital engineering and AI skills closer to businesses, allowing for speedier collaboration, localized innovation, and solutions targeted to regional needs. This strategic expansion aligns with Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 and underscores ITC Infotech’s long-standing emphasis on partnership-led growth and customer-centric innovation.

The hub was officially inaugurated on Jan. 15 by Sanjiv Puri, chairman and managing director of ITC Ltd. This facility is designed to help enterprises leverage advanced technologies and convert digital ambitions into measurable business outcomes. This move aligns closely with Saudi Arabia’s efforts to build a knowledge-driven economy powered by innovation and technology.

Saudi Arabia’s digital leap

Vision 2030 is more than just economic diversification; it is a clear blueprint for creating a technologically advanced society. This vision is centered on the integration of artificial intelligence and digital engineering, which are transforming industries and enabling long-term, sustainable growth. The strategic importance of AI is clear, with the Saudi Data and AI Authority estimating that it may add $135 billion to the Kingdom’s GDP by 2030. This commitment is supported by significant investments, including $14.9 billion announced at LEAP 2025 to advance digital infrastructure, talent, and next-generation technologies, as well as historic projects like the $2.7 billion Hexagon Data Center in Riyadh. Together, these efforts are laying the foundation for a secure, resilient, and future-ready digital ecosystem that can support AI adoption, data-driven governance, and smart city development at scale.

What the hub offers

ITC Infotech’s Riyadh hub is designed to fuel this momentum by focusing on three core areas:

  • AI-powered platforms: Delivering predictive analytics, intelligent automation, and data-driven insights to help businesses transition from reactive operations to proactive strategies.
  • Digital engineering solutions: Leveraging Industry 4.0-driven smart manufacturing capabilities, integrating AI-led modeling, connected systems, and advanced analytics to optimize production performance, improve asset utilization, and proactively reduce operational and quality risks across the engineering lifecycle.
  • Cloud-native architectures: Building agile, secure, and resilient ecosystems that enable faster innovation and seamless integration across enterprise systems.

These capabilities are designed to enable organizations to innovate, scale, and compete in a rapidly evolving digital economy. Beyond technology, the hub is fundamentally anchored in building a team of the region, from the region, for the region and for global impact. Through structured skill-building programs, deep partnerships with academia, systematic knowledge transfer, and immersive, hands-on delivery models, the hub is creating a future-ready Saudi workforce fully aligned with Vision 2030 and capable of serving both national and international priorities.

Driving enterprise transformation 

The ITC Infotech hub aims to enable transformation rather than simply deploy technology. By driving AI adoption, accelerating digital engineering, and building cloud-native ecosystems, ITC Infotech seeks to help businesses:

  • develop new business models to meet evolving market needs.
  • improve operational efficiency through predictive insights and automation.
  • support sustainability goals by optimizing resources and reducing risks.
  • build a skilled local workforce capable of leading future innovations.

These outcomes support enterprises as they transition to more resilient, data-driven, and digitally mature operating models.

The road ahead

ITC Infotech is a wholly owned subsidiary of ITC Limited, one of India’s largest conglomerates, with over 25 years of experience as a trusted technology services partner to enterprises globally. The company focuses on next-generation enterprise transformation, delivering services across infrastructure and application modernization, cloud, cybersecurity, digital engineering, and AI-led innovation.

As Saudi Arabia continues its digital journey, ITC Infotech’s combination of global expertise, strong local presence, and collaborative delivery model positions it as a long-term partner in advancing Vision 2030. ITC Infotech’s hub in Riyadh reflects this commitment, bringing advanced capabilities closer to customers, investing in local talent, and enabling enterprises to adopt AI at scale as they compete in an increasingly digital world.